


That's Rough, Bloody

by peacemonger98



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Haikyuu!!
Genre: F/F, M/M, everyone bends stuff, hq atla crossover, rated M for the language and some descriptions of unsavory stuff, yes it is a hq atla crossover
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-22
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2018-09-19 04:05:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9417755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peacemonger98/pseuds/peacemonger98
Summary: Hinata smiled brightly, too bright for a killer. He slowly lowered his hands and, finally, his victim took in a huge gulp of air and fell on his knees. He tried his best to stay quiet while coughing and crying on the ground. He'd do anything to avoid having his blood bent again.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> listen up babes! school has started up again and this little baby has been my passion project for months. its taken me quite a while to write even this much. I think im maybe halfway through at 15k words. ill be updating whenever i feel like it and ill try to keep the updates above 2-3k words. also! since there is some more graphic parts of this fic, i will warn you in the notes beforehand what the chap will contain.

"You know what? I hate when people whine. Most just watch and stay silent. Fear conditioning and all that. But you whined. If you hadn't opened your big mouth we wouldn't be in this position." Hinata said all this as he walked around his prey, a young man with soft grey locks and pale skin. He was holding his hands one over the other, the form for bloodbending.

His prey was frozen where it stood, helpless to do anything but watch an assassin, a child, walk around it and inevitably kill it. If he could have, he would have been trembling.

"I mean you could have died quickly, quietly. No fuss involved. But you made noise. And, as I mentioned, I hate when people make noise. Now, when I lower my hands you won't make any noise will you?" He stopped right in front of his victim, looking him in the eye. His prey nodded as much as he could with his body being controlled from the inside.

Hinata smiled brightly, too bright for a killer. He slowly lowered his hands and, finally, his victim took in a huge gulp of air and fell on his knees. He tried his best to stay quiet while coughing and crying on the ground. He'd do anything to avoid having his blood bent again.

Before he could take more than three breaths, his hair was pulled up and something razor sharp and freezing was pressed up against his throat.

"Do you have any last words before your pitiful life ends?" Hinata said softly.

His victim only muttered, albeit a bit garbled, "Daichi..." He held his breath and waited to feel the sharp object make its final move, but all was still. Then, the pressure on his throat was gone and arms pulled him up into a bone crushing hug.

"Suga...oh my god Suga...." Daichi muttered into his neck. He was shaking. Suga pulled back from him to look at his face.

"What just happened?..." Suga muttered as he gazed into his companion's sightless eyes.

Daichi swallowed and put his hands on Suga's cheeks. "I lost track of you in the crowd at the festival. I could barely feel your footsteps in between everyone else's. When I came down a side street, I heard a voice and I felt you trembling… then you said my name..." His voice cracked on his last statement, but he gritted his teeth and bore on. "I knocked out the guy who did this to you."

He looked down at his feet, not that it did much good, but Suga followed his lead and looked down on the ground. Sure enough, there the kid lay. The piece of ice he was using as a blade was slowly melting out of his hand into a small puddle.

"Should we take him to the boss?" Suga asked apprehensively. Daichi sighed.

"That's the only thing we can do."

  
  


 

Hinata woke to complete darkness. He closed his eyes and opened them a few times just so he was sure he was actually seeing nothing and not just the back of his eyelids. 

He tried to reach his hands out, both feeling for any walls and feeling for water. When he tried to lift up his hands, however, he found them bound. When he tried to lift his fingers, the rocks around them pressed them down.

"Who's there!" he yelled with enough force to wake the dead. "I swear I'll-" his voice was cut off by a rock covered hand clamping over his mouth. He realized then that his entire body was covered in rock and he was completely unable to move.

"Now, now aren't you a feisty one?" a silky voice said from in front of him… no, behind him, where was it coming from? "Are you going to make this more trouble than necessary little shrimp?" Hinata yelled into the rocks over his mouth and struggled against the restraints binding him.

"You can stop trying that. It won't work and you know it. Now, how about we get started?" From right in front of him, a soft green light suddenly illuminated. Now that he could see, he was in a closed room with two people. The person with the silky voice was sitting across from him and there was another, rougher, sharper-looking guy standing with his arms crossed in front of a wall—the door, presumably. The green lantern was on a circular track that wound between him and the man sitting across from him.

Hinata gulped and shot daggers with his eyes at the man. Before he could scream again, the man spoke once more.

"I'll remove the hold on your mouth if you promise not to yell. People are trying to sleep, shrimpy." Hinata wanted nothing more than to fight the people binding him, to scream and struggle, but could tell he was seriously outclassed. He nodded his head. The man held up his hand and the rocks covering Hinata's mouth floated off and into the man’s waiting hand. Hinata stretched his jaw but remained silent. The man seemed happy about that.

"Here's how this will go. I will ask you a question and every time you give a satisfactory answer, I will remove a rock from your restraints. If you don't, I'll add a rock. If you cooperate, you can walk out of here without a single bond. Sound good?" A dazzling smile from the man. A nod from his prisoner.

"Good! Let's start then. What is your name?”

"What's yours?"

The man tutted. "Incorrect answer." A rock pressed down on his forehead, forcing his head back. "What is your name?"

Hinata grunted, “Tell me yours and I’ll tell you mine.”

The man across from him pursed his lips and tilted his head in thought. He decided the proposition was worth it. “Oikawa Tooru.” Hinata thought it a ballsy move to state his whole name, even if it was a fake. “Now keep up your end of the deal.”

“…Hinata.”

"Good! See this will be easy! Oh, also, my friend in the room can tell if you're lying so don't even think about doing that." The rock pressing against his forehead went away. His captor's smile somehow turned sharper. It appeared to be bright and happy, but now it possessed an ominous edge. "Why did you try to kill my dear friend Koushi?"

"...The silver-haired guy?" A nod from his captor. Hinata scoffed. "Money."

A rock lifted from his chest. "Who pays you to kill innocent folk like Koushi, Hinata?"

"You seriously think I can just tell you?" Oikawa’s eyes squinted slighty, curious. "I can't tell you! They'll kill me!" Hinata felt a rock once again press on his forehead. "Come on, you know I can't tell you!" The rock pressed harder. Hinata grimaced but ground his teeth together.

Oikawa stood up from his seated position. He began to walk slowly around the track toward Hinata, like a lion stalking its prey. “You’re safe now, Hinata. We can protect you." His face disappeared as he walked behind Hinata’s earthen seat. His voice was suddenly directly in Hinata’s ear. “Do you like the little lantern I have? There’s a special chemical that makes the flame green…”

This was wrong. This didn't feel right at all. Hinata tried to turn his head away from the voice seemingly whispering into his soul, succeeding in making the rock pressing against his forehead press harder. “I don't want to be here. I didn't do anything to you!”

Oikawa’s voice was suddenly at his other ear. “You hurt one of our members, Hinata. We’re a family down here—you hurt one of us, you hurt all of us.”

Hinata didn't stop trying to squirm away from Oikawa, but said nothing more. He heard a sigh and the rock was lifted from his forehead once more. “Why are you holding back, Hinata? What do your people have on you?” Oikawa squatted next to him, resting his elbows on the arms of the chair and looking up at Hinata’s face. He received a healthy dose of silence.

“Can you at least tell me yes or no?” A pause, then a reluctant nod. “Good…are they torturing someone close to you for leverage?” Hinata thought, then shook his head. “Do they have any way of tracking you?” Another shake of the head. “Will they hurt you if they find you or find out you talked?” A sigh.

“Yes.” Hinata didn't move his head further, but glanced at Oikawa out of the corner of his eye. “Me talking to you only ends up with me getting hurt. Why should I tell you anything?” He spat the last part directly at Oikawa. He was unfazed, however. He stood up and held his hand above the lantern, seemingly feeling its heat.

“…We can offer you protection. These people you work for clearly don't treat you well. I’ll bet if I dig deep enough, I’ll find some pretty nasty scars.” Hinata tried not to visibly flinch. “But, we don't do that sort of thing here.” He raised his hand and with it the flame in the lantern grew until it burned up the paper surrounding it. “If a member of our group does something wrong, we hold a council. We decide a just punishment that doesn't involve physical retribution.”

Oikawa looked back at Hinata. “We are fair here. And we do everything in our power to protect our members. We can offer you that same protection.” He left the paperless lantern burning and walked back to his seat across from Hinata. “But only if you tell us what you know.”

 

 

 

  
The following hours were much more pleasant than Hinata had expected. The two exchanged questions and answers, each man answering honestly. With every question and answer, a rock was lifted off of Hinata’s body. By the end of the interrogation, the redhead was almost completely rock free. Only his hands were coated in earth, which he understood. He had almost killed a member of their group using his bending.

Hinata was simultaneously relieved and terrified to be leaving his old clan. He knew the way they treated him was unjust and completely wrong, but it was what he knew. It kept him on his toes, made him question if every bump in the night was the wind or someone coming to teach him a lesson he'd already learned. It was horrible, but it made him a better assassin.

He pondered all this as he was led by the man at the door, Iwaizumi, to his quarters. He'd heard of the Dai Li before and recognized the green lantern on a track as being part of their tactics, but these men weren't them. They didn’t use the lantern for its hypnotizing purpose nor did they possess the discipline, the monotone voices or the funny hats to match.

As far as he knew, they were a bunch of earth benders living in a bunker with a firebending leader whose smile could cut diamond. Apparently, that was all he needed to know.

Iwaizumi, led him through several pitch-dark, winding tunnels that opened into a big cave where many of the group members were training. Hinata watched them bend stones at each other weakly and walk through attack patterns. They seemed to be having fun rather than actually training. The cave was lit by glowing green crystals embedded naturally in the walls.

His eye caught on one member of the group who let out a loud yell as he firebent towards his opponent, who brought up a wall of ice to block it. The fire bender had jet black hair and striking blue eyes, peculiar for a non water bender. The water bender he was fighting against was blonde and short, maybe even shorter than Hinata. She looked like she'd be shy and timid, but her bending style suggested otherwise.

Seeing his interest in the group, Iwaizumi stopped the walk back to Hinata's new room and led him over to the group. He also saw the silver-haired guy he tried to kill, Suga, or Koushi to Oikawa. Unsurprisingly, he felt no remorse for his actions. Any remorse had been beaten out of him.

They all stopped their joking and training to look over at the new kid. Hinata noticed the way they all looked at him like he was a target rather than a person. It felt strange to be the prey instead of the predator.

"So, this is the guy that tried to kill Suga, huh?" the man training with Suga asked as he walked over. Daichi, Suga's partner. Hinata noticed his eyes, brown yet glazed over and dull—maybe he was blind? "Let's see what he's got."

Hinata let out a short sigh. "I really can't, I'm exhausted and-" A large mound of stone rose up from the ground and shot at him. Before he could think, his instincts kicked in and his hands rose to their default position, that of blood bending. All members of the group stopped breathing for a moment when they saw the look of frozen shock on Daichi's face as the stone stopped. Hinata slowly lowered his hands, forcing a now grimacing Daichi to his knees. Hinata’s muscles screamed in protest, but his survival instincts couldn't be fought.

"I said I'm tired..." Hinata breathed out and dropped his hands entirely, releasing Daichi from his hold. Hinata didn't miss the looks shot at him by the other group members. Again, he felt no remorse for the the miserable state he left the earth bender in.

"Iwaizumi-san, can you please take me to my room?" His escort nodded and gave the rest of the group a look Hinata couldn't read. He hoped it was something like _Don't kill this kid in his sleep or else_.

Hinata snuck one last look over his shoulder. He saw the group going back to its training, albeit a bit shaken. The fire bender was looking right at him, though. Those blue eyes seemed to look right through him. Hinata turned back around. He was going to need a lot of sleep to deal with these people.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He sucked in a deep breath and began plotting escape plans in his head. The side of him that now knew these new people were his allies was overpowered by his deep-rooted sense of self preservation. A low and gravelly voice interrupted his thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo! Here is chapter 2 with some major introductions. There are brief mentions of violence in this one but it's not bad.

Hinata remembered walking into his room, but not falling asleep. He did, however, remember waking up. When he woke from his slumber, it wasn't from his body being well rested. Hinata heard a noise from the opposite side of his tiny room and was immediately vigilant.

His eyes opened wide, again in vain due to the absolute darkness of his surroundings. In feeling around for the water inhabiting the body of his intruder, he felt someone familiar. Before he could properly react to who was in his room, his hands were shot back against the wall behind his bed and a stone glove covered his mouth.

He sucked in a deep breath and began plotting escape plans in his head. The side of him that now knew these new people were his allies was overpowered by his deep-rooted sense of self preservation. A low and gravelly voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Do you know who I am?" the voice asked. Hinata nodded slowly. "Good. Just know that this is a courtesy call. The next time you lay a finger on Suga, you'll be paying for it."

Before Hinata could make another move, a fist covered in stone slammed into his gut, hard. He coughed into the glove over his mouth and tried his best to suck in a deep breath through his nose, which only made his gut hurt more. _So, at least one rib is broken. That's just great._

"Stay the hell away from Suga," the voice growled one last time. Then, the earth restraining his mouth and hands was gone, and so was his intruder.

Hinata managed to shift into a more comfortable sitting position with minimal wincing and put a hand over his stomach. He tried to feel underneath his skin for any injury. A cracked rib, as expected. Hinata wasn't going to even attempt healing himself. The last time he tried, he somehow managed to make his injury worse and hurt the person instructing him. He knew going back to sleep wouldn't be happening anytime soon, so exploring was his only other option.

He stepped out of his room and found that, to his surprise, there were glowing green rocks leading the way through the winding caves. He followed them and the pulling feeling of a large body of water in the distance.

Where he ended up wasn't surprising. Back in the main cavern, his vision was lit up with green crystals. He could almost smile if he didn't think about where he really was. Trapped in the claws of a vague but menacing enemy. Ally. Weird cave cult.

Now that he was getting a fresher view of it, he found the source of the water drawing him out of his room. There was a giant waterfall and crystal clear pool in one of the corners of the huge cavern. As he approached the fall Hinata lifted his arm tentatively and caught a whiff of his…aroma. It wasn't pleasant. He figured a bath was in order.

_Warm water...nice,_ Hinata thought as he waded in and swam out into the center of the pool. He took off his pants slowly, but not his shirt, so as to not disturb his ribs even further. He formed a bubble around his head and swam down to the bottom. He found that the pool wasn't too deep, maybe four meters at most. No outlets, though, which meant no underwater escape from the cave.

He thought about swimming up the water fall and trying to find its source when he suddenly felt like he was being watched. In looking around, he found nobody else under the water with him, but there was a figure above the water dangling their feet in it. He quickly put on his now cleaner pants and swam up to the surface.

The figure was the small, blonde water bender he'd met the day before. She was sitting on a higher edge, dipping her toes in the water and swirling them around nonsensically. When she saw Hinata surfacing, she jumped and squeaked fairly loudly. He just gave her a look and swam to the rocky bank.

She stared at him with wide eyes the whole time, making him more than a little uncomfortable. When he carefully settled himself on a flatter, less spiky rock, he began bending the water out of his clothes.

The little water bender opened her mouth to say something, then closed it. She stayed quiet and looked away for a minute. Then, seemingly with more confidence, she turned back. "Do you need some help?"

Hinata took a moment to look at her, but he didn't expect to see her looking not at his face, but at his chest. _My ribs..._ Before he could protest, she opened her mouth again. "I know a lot of people here aren't your biggest fans right now, but I… I thought you might want, like, a little healing 'cause you seem like you're in pain and that's not a good thing..." She trailed off at the end and looked down at her hands.

Hinata observed her for a brief moment, then made his decision. "I'm fine," he said curtly and stood up to leave.

"Please don't go! I j-just wanted to help!" she yelled after him.

"I'm really fine..." Hinata walked a bit faster.

Before he could take two more steps, she had latched onto his arm. He stopped his stomping and turned around, albeit a bit bewildered. "Please." She let go of him and bowed. "Please let me heal you..."

Hinata swallowed down the lump in his throat at the familiar sight and blushed. "Ok, ok!" The blonde girl stood up and beamed in his direction, which he returned with a bewildered look and a confused smile of his own.

She took his hand and gently led him back to the waterfall pool. She gracefully reached her hands toward the water, which flowed up and out of the pool to form a perfectly even bed of ice raised slightly above the ground. She looked back at him and gestured excitedly for him to lay down on it, which he did tentatively.

It felt weird to be in the presence of another water bender. It'd been over ten years since he'd seen his own tribe. Plus, his previous employer worked almost primarily with earth and fire benders. The more he thought about his old boss, the more his mind fought against the allegiance he'd formed with them. _I have a new clan now..._

As his thoughts drifted away from killing and onto food, his muscles relaxed and his healing companion relaxed with them. She revealed a flask with water tribe designs on it and drew a small ball of glowing blue water out of it. Hinata's mind lit up in recognition. "Hey, wait are you from- " Before he could finish his sentence an icy hot feeling lit up his ribs and he yelped in pain, something he tried and failed to cover up by coughing.

The healer opened her mouth to apologize, but quickly shut it. She zeroed her gaze in on Hinata's ribs and, this time, slowly eased the water over his thinly covered chest. He winced this time, but didn't yell out. "My name is Yachi Hitoka. I'm new at this whole healing thing, but I'm learning and Kuroo says I have the magic touch." She offered an embarrassed smile and continued moving the water over his ribs.

She didn't ask any questions. She went on healing him in every place she could reach. He didn't know how she did it, but she managed to draw the constant ache out of his bones. Lord knew he had scarring and bruises deeper than he could see.

He didn't know how long he was laying on her little ice bed, but it was long enough to doze off. When he woke up, his body temperature had melted some of the ice beneath him. Yachi was once again sitting on the edge of the pool, looking into it. She looked deep in thought, so Hinata silently got up and walked away from the small healer. Thank you, he thought in her direction.

As he walked to the area he saw everyone training at the day before, he stretched his arms above his head and felt the satisfying pops of his joints returning to place.

Before he knew what he was doing, he was running through the the few forms of water bending he knew. He followed and felt the energy flowing through his body, from his feet to his fingertips. His mentor's voice echoed through his head as he moved. _Left foot further out, Shouyou. That's it. Now close your eyes and really feel the energy. Don't close off your body's connection to your mind._ He smiled to himself and allowed his mind to wander while his eyes closed.

Hinata went through the the forms for what felt like hours. He listened to the language of his body, the way it moved and spoke. He allowed it to move on its own, the way it felt natural. His healed muscles sang in joy at the slight strain and practiced motions.

In his complete focus, he failed to pay attention to his surroundings. By the time he opened his eyes, The entire crowd that was training the day before was in front of him, watching. Hinata froze halfway through a stance and immediately sank into a bloodbending position. It was instinct to do it at that point.

Before he could debilitate someone else, though, a familiar face popped up from within the crowd. "Well I see you found the training grounds, shrimpy-chan!" Oikawa walked out from the center of the group and over to the fiery water bender, putting a hand on his lower back. Hinata felt the unnaturally high heat of the leader's palm and knew to relax. _Friggin firebenders..._

Hinata straightened up slowly but didn't fully put his hands down, always ready for a fight.

"Everyone, this is Hinata! Now, I know he's new and some of you may have reason to be suspicious of his presence-" he made a point of smiling directly at Daichi, and the blind man seemed to feel it, too, "-but I can assure you that he is no threat. He's our new secret weapon!" At this, Hinata allowed his shock to be seen as he stared at the menacing leader. The palm on his back heated up further and he dropped his gaze. "I expect you all to show him the same respect that you show me. You've seen what happens otherwise."

Oikawa seemed content with his simultaneous threat and introduction. He called for a lineup and the whole group groaned as they trudged to their seemingly designated spots.

"Here we have our earthbenders, who happen to be in the majority down here: Sawamura and Iwaizumi you've met, Tanaka, Ennoshita and Yahaba. Then we have our metalbenders Asahi and Bokuto. And finally our super specialists, lava bender Nishinoya and the sand benders Tsukishima and Akaashi." Each person took their turn to smile or show salutations, Bokuto and Nishinoya being especially spirited.

Hinata noticed one of the sandbenders, Akaashi, had a peculiar arm. It was a tint darker than the rest of his body and appeared to be unnaturally hard. Oikawa was about to lead Hinata to the next group when he noticed the quizzical expression on his face. “Oh, I see you’ve spotted a well-kept secret. Our dear Akaashi is an amputee. The darker arm is made of earth especially crafted for him.” The earth bender in question only lightly ran his fingers over the prosthetic in response to the attention.

Oikawa nudged Hinata to walk to his right. “Next, we have our waterbenders, who have now become tied for the second largest population, thanks to you. Kuroo here is an instructor the majority of the time, though he's pretty skilled with plant bending. Our ice specialist is little Yachi and our principle healer is Kyoutani." Hinata took a moment to stare at the very menacing looking man whose job was to make people feel better. _God, this place is weird._

Oikawa gestured to the second to last group. “Our firebenders include myself, Kageyama and Yamaguchi. Kiyoko is our lightning specialist.” This time, Hinata outright stared at the firebender with bright blue eyes and a red ability. It would be an understatement to say he was curious about his story.

"Finally, our least populated group, the air benders." Oikawa seemed especially pleased to see the look of surprise on Hinata's face. "The pudding head is Kozume and you know Sugawara." When Hinata looked at Kenma, he ducked his head shyly, but Suga had the opposite reaction. He held Hinata's gaze confidently with a smile somehow even more deadly than Oikawa's. No wonder he held so much respect for the man.

"As I said, this is Hinata, the newest edition to our waterbending squad. His specialty is bloodbending, as you know. He'll be training with me and Kuroo for a while. And, please, I don't want any visits to him while I'm not around, ok?" Oikawa said with a pleased smile. Daichi pouted slightly and turned away. "Ok! Back to training!"

The group began to disperse and Hinata turned to walk away when Oikawa grabbed him by the wrist. "I don't think so, shrimpy." His smile was laced with poison and Hinata knew not to question it. He shook himself free of the strong grip and nodded. Oikawa turned on his heel and began bouncing toward the tunnel system. Confused but not stupid, Hinata followed his lead.

The leader started walking away from the sleeping quarters toward the room he was in the day prior. Hinata stopped dead in his tracks, unwilling to go through that torture again. He was about to turn around and run when he felt two other bodies in the tunnel, following himself and the leader. There was no escaping this time.

Hinata slowly turned back towards a waiting Oikawa and followed him, though slower this time. It took longer than he remembered to get their destination, but they didn't arrive at a room, as Hinata expected. The winding tunnel just ended. Hinata whipped around only to find the way back blocked by Sawamura and one of the other earth benders. _Bokuto,_ his brain supplied.

Sawamura put his hands up and Hinata immediately tensed, prepared for anything he could throw at him. He didn't attack, he only pushed his hands back down, lowering the wall at the end of the tunnel. Hinata relaxed, but only slightly.

Oikawa made a welcoming gesture and Hinata silently crept in, Bokuto and Daichi following after and sealing the room behind them. This time, there were a few green crystals in the room glowing, making the atmosphere only slightly less intimidating. Oikawa gestured to the same seat Hinata was in before and sat down across from him.

Hinata sat down in his chair, but kept his arms crossed over his chest so they couldn't be restrained. Oikawa noticed and smirked. "So, you're learning. Well, since you are our newest recruit, we have a little gift for you." Hinata knew already he wasn't going to like this.

Bokuto stepped forward and held up a small, circular piece of metal. Hinata couldn't see specifically, but there seemed to be some sort of design on it. He bent it directly above Oikawa waiting palm, which already had a decent sized flame kindled in it. Hinata immediately regretted sitting down.

He made a move to get up when suddenly his feet were stuck in the ground. In looking back behind him, he found a smirking Daichi. Hinata turned back around to look at the other earth bender, finding him grinning as well, but not in an evil way. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet excitedly.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked to nobody in particular. Bokuto seemed to brighten even more. Before he could open his mouth, Oikawa answered for him.

"We do this to mark our territory. So that enemies know what is ours and who not to mess with. We all have one." On cue, Bokuto held his leg in the air, showing off an impressive brand on his calf. Oikawa pulled his shirt down at the front to show his scar in the center of his chest.

"I'll tell you the backstory later, though. We need to get you marked.” Satisfied that the brand had been heated up enough, he looked at Hinata expectedly.

Hinata just looked back with a bewildered expression. "You can't honestly think I'm just going to sit here and let this happen! I don't even know why I'm here!”

Oikawa stared at him for a long moment, as if weighing out whether explaining himself would be worth it. Finally, the flame in his palm extinguished. The brand floated over to the track the lantern was on and set down on it.

Hinata could tell Oikawa was deep in thought. His eyes were locked onto the lantern still there from the day before. He looked like he was trying to find meaning in the small paper creation. Finally, he sighed and looked up at Hinata. “We don't do… _this_ to everyone. You’re… a special case. Usually, we find kids out on the streets that show promise and give them a home. Bokuto was one of them.” The earth bender took a small bow and grinned childishly.

“You, however, are a different story. There’s not a bender in this camp that can beat Koushi. Not even me. He’s strong and incredibly smart. For someone to be able to even temporarily get the best of him…” Oikawa trailed off and shook his head. “…It takes a powerful person is all I'm saying. And in order for us to accomplish our goals, we need powerful people.”

Oikawa looked into Hinata’s eyes with such intensity and earnest Hinata had to look down. He mulled over Oikawa’s words. “What goals are so…” Hinata uncrossed his arms and gestured randomly with his hands, “… _important_ they force you to kidnap people?” At this, he looked back up at Oikawa.

Oikawa swallowed thickly. “We aren't proud of our initial methods, but…we’re desperate. We need strong benders on our side.”

“You’re evading the question,” Hinata remarked.

Oikawa regarded him like one would regard a particularly irritating bug. He spoke slowly and clearly, “Our goals need to be met. The alternative would be catastrophic.” Hinata wanted to push further, but even he wasn't that stupid.

They stared each other down until Hinata finally broke. “Fine. I can believe that you need me to build a more powerful… army, I guess. If I say I’ll join you, will you give me my freedom back and protect me from… you know?” A shudder ran down Hinata’s spine, but he didn't show it.

Oikawa finally seemed to relax. “We can’t give you your freedom back because we never took it. We merely didn’t show you the way out. It’s next on our list.” He smiled gently, catching Hinata off guard. “But, before we go any further, I have to make sure you really are on our side. The brand.” His smile turned playfully devilish.

The brand floated off the circular track to its place above Oikawa’s palm, newly fired up. Hinata stared at it as if it was a platypus-cobra about to jump up and bite him. He gritted his teeth. “…where…” he muttered.

Oikawa understood his vague inquiry and gestured with his free hand towards Hinata’s forearm. “All water benders get their brand on their arms. Fire benders on their chests, air benders on the back of their neck or spine and earth benders on their legs. We let you choose the arm, though.” He seemed pleased with this.

Hinata continued to stare at the brand threateningly, but reluctantly held out his left forearm. Oikawa nodded and the brand slowly floated over until it was directly above Hinata’s arm.

He could smell his scorching flesh before he felt it. He clenched his jaw shut and screwed his eyes as tight as possible. His hands balled into white-knuckled fists. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't keep a pained cry from ripping its way out of his throat.

A deep voice came from his left, low and calm. “Breathe, Hinata. In and out.” At the prompting, Hinata stuttered a breath through his clenched teeth. He willfully ignored the feeling of unbid tears running down his cheeks. The same low voice spoke again. “Just let go. It’s ok. Let…” Hinata had checked out before the voice could finish its soothing message.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter there's gonna be a massive fight so gET HYPED!!11!1   
> for real, though, thank you for all the love and comments. it really makes me want to actually finish writing this COUGH COUGH   
> leave me a kudos and comment and tell me what you want to see or what you think is going on!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He recalled being pulled up from his seat by a bubbly Bokuto and being led to a different room. He remembered the hushed conversations going on around and behind him as he crossed through the training cavern. He just didn't regain the ability to verbalize until he was laying down on a small stone bed covered in monkey-sheep's wool with the menacing healer working on him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heeeeey~  
> so it hasnt been about 5 months or anything. now that classes are all done, i hope to be able to upload more. i make no promises though. also here is the big fight scene! there is mention of vomit and somewhat violent stuff?? i dont think its too bad

This time, when Hinata came to, he remembered everything. He recalled being pulled up from his seat by a bubbly Bokuto and being led to a different room. He remembered the hushed conversations going on around and behind him as he crossed through the training cavern. He just didn't regain the ability to verbalize until he was laying down on a small stone bed covered in monkey-sheep's wool with the menacing healer working on him. 

"Do they really do that to everyone?" Hinata asked quietly. The healer’s eyes flickered up at the sound of his patient's voice before continuing his work on his arm.

"Do what?" he asked. Hinata looked over at Kyoutani.

"Brand," he said. Kyoutani grimaced harder, if at all possible.

"....yes," he answered hesitantly. “But the pain fades." Hinata hummed in assent. He continued to look at the healer, which only made him more uncomfortable.

“So why did you join?" Kyoutani had had enough. He drew the water off of Hinata's mark and laid a damp, cool towel over it before getting up and stomping out. _I guess he's a bit closed off,_ giggled Hinata to himself. 

He tied the cloth around his forearm with a surprisingly small amount of pain before pushing himself up and out of the admittedly comfortable bed. Since Kyoutani had left before Hinata had a chance to follow him, he had to follow the feeling of water to the cave. Again.

There he found the same large group that was chattering and whispering behind his back just hours prior. Instead of the resistance he harbored toward the group, he found a sense of reluctant belonging. 

He did not find those feelings reciprocated when he walked over, however. Some of the group training glanced in his direction then continued their tasks. Others stopped their activities entirely to mutter amongst themselves and stare at him as if he were an animal in a zoo. Before he could respond to them, one of the water benders called him over. _Kuroo._

Hinata took one last look at those staring at him and jogged over to Kuroo. He was greeted with a welcoming pat on the back and a crooked but warm grin. "Hey shrimpy! We were just about to run through a new form! Why don't you stand here and just follow along?" Hinata nodded as Kuroo pulled him into the spot between himself and Yachi. 

Kuroo began the form, stepping forward onto his left foot, pushing an invisible ball of water with his right hand. Hinata followed each movement with precision until something dawned on him. "Is this a firebending form?"

"What an astute observation. Why, yes it is." Kuroo smiled and continued the form. "A great leader of old once said-" he stopped bending and made a face and old man voice- “ _It is important to draw wisdom from different places. If you take it from only one place it becomes rigid and stale."_ At this, he tilted his head back and laughed. "That, and it makes the water look really cool once you master it."

He continued going through the form, repeating it a few times until Yachi and Hinata had a better feel for it. "Why don't you just use water from the start? Then you know if you're doing the form wrong or not," Hinata asked.

Kuroo didn't respond immediately. "...Your mind has to learn the movement before your body does. Doing this allows your mind to acclimate before your body has to perform. It's kind of like climbing. If I were to scale the Great Wall of Ba Sing Se, would it make more sense to push myself all the way up to the top as quickly as possible or move gradually up?"

"If you don't have much time, the first option would make more sense. But it's much more unhealthy..." Yachi spoke up then trailed off after looking at Hinata. Kuroo nodded.

"Exactly. You're not allowing your body to adjust to the height if you do that. And since we aren't under pressure right now, we _can_ adjust. So, we do just that. Now try again." 

Hinata allowed his mind to roam as he went through the motions of this new form. He'd always been forced to learn forms as quickly and efficiently as possible. This new training style was entirely foreign but entirely welcome.

Once Kuroo was sure that his pupils had learned the form correctly, he bent over two small balls of water from a pouch on his belt. Then, they went through the form again. And again. And again and again until Kuroo was satisfied once more. Hinata was slightly sore from doing the same movements over and over, but the ache in his muscles was welcome after being still for so many hours.

Kuroo seemed to be finished at the same time everyone else was done as well. Hinata thought it was a coincidence until he noticed a smirking Oikawa walking towards the training grounds. _This can't be good,_ he thought with dread.

The other group members seemed to be excited for this, though. Whatever it was, Hinata was anxious to find out.

Oikawa clapped his hands to get everyone's attention, though it was already on him. "It's that time of day again! Prepare yourselves for the worst." Most of the people in the group were smiling in nervous anticipation for whatever Oikawa was planning. "Today's teams are..." he paused for dramatic effect and a stayed silent until Iwaizumi rolled his eyes and smacked the back of his head. "Ow! Iwa-chan..." He pouted childishly. "Alright, alright. Our teams are Suga and Daichi!" The two hi-fived and bumped ankles, some kind of secret handshake Hinata presumed. "Going against Kageyama and Hinata."

Hinata's chest immediately tightened. He looked down at it as if it had personally offended him. 

When he looked back up, the firebender was standing above him scowling. "Let's go," he muttered in a dark voice. Hinata trailed along behind him. _He needs to lighten up._

Oikawa led the two teams just outside the flat training ground. He nudged Hinata to stand right next to Kageyama across from a confident looking Daichi and Sugawara. He then walked into the center of the pairs and winked at Iwaizumi, who rolled his eyes and promptly bent a large table of earth under the teams. The rest of the earthbenders bent up stands on one side of he arena so the rest of the group could watch comfortably.

"The rules are as follows: you fall out of the ring, you are done. You get knocked out, you are done. You tap out, you are done. No permanent disfiguration, no breaking any bones, no killing your opponents and friendly fire is permitted. Begin when I give the signal. Hajime!" At that, the piece of stone he was standing on got uprooted and shot him back into the stands where Iwaizumi was waiting with open arms to catch him. Hinata looked back to his opponents and gulped. "GO!!!" 

Daichi was the first to move, sweeping his foot out and shifting the earth beneath the pair, an attempt at knocking Hinata and Kageyama off balance. The firebender was obviously practiced with this, as he jumped up and shot a fireball straight at Suga. The air bender blocked the blast with an air sweep and an additional gust of wind meant to knock Kageyama back and out of the ring. He expertly dodged it and landed right in front of Suga. They started going at it in bending-fueled hand-to-hand combat until Suga dropped down under one of Kageyama's harder punches and blew out all the air in his lungs, effectively knocking Kageyama back and out of the ring.

Meanwhile, Daichi was coming after Hinata with chunk after chunk of rock. Hinata was stepping back and dodging until he felt the edge of the arena slide out from under his heel. He immediately locked onto Daichi's blood and yanked himself up using it. As soon as his footing was back under him, he dug his metaphorical claws into Daichi. Hinata put one hand over the other and slowly walked towards his grimacing and paralyzed opponent. Hinata could feel him fighting against the control with all the strength in his body, but he bore on with his own strength, which was nothing to scoff at. 

Hinata made his way across the plateau to Daichi, controlling him the whole way. Once he got up to him, he bent Daichi's head and spine back and was about to make him tap out until he realized he was having trouble breathing. Actually, he couldn't breathe at all. Hinata tried taking a deep breath only to find there was no air around him. He stumbled back a few steps and looked around himself, still keeping Daichi's blood in his hands, though now his hold was weaker. 

He saw Suga standing a good distance away from him holding his hands up, as if he were holding an orb. Despite Suga's strong stance, his face was filled with panic. He was the reason Hinata couldn't breathe. _He sucked all the air out of my reach._ His vision was starting to grow blurry, but he made his decision. "Tap yet?" Suga yelled somewhat desperately. Hinata didn't respond, but released Daichi and swung his hands towards Suga, focusing on the water in his stomach. Hinata made a desperate swing of his arm upward, successfully forcing the bile out of Suga's gut and into his mouth. 

He didn't give in, though. He coughed and spluttered, turning to the side and spitting, but maintained the vacuum around Hinata's head. He shifted the responsibility to one hand and used the other to force air underneath Hinata's shirt, forcing it up and over his face, making it even harder to fight for breath. 

Hinata wasn't about to give up, though. He scratched at his shirt until he managed to rip it off his head. He resorted to a rudimentary tactic used only for fighting in groups. With the last ounce of his strength and his vision fading quickly, he grabbed for Daichi's blood with one hand and Suga's in the other and clapped his palms together forcefully. The last thing he saw before he hit the ground were his two opponents slamming together bodily. 

As soon as they crashed together, the oxygen around his head came rushing in. He took a huge gulp of air and began to cough. Hinata tried his best to take deep, even breaths to soothe the fire burning in his lungs. He looked over at his opponents, who were lying unmoving on the ground. Hinata didn't trust that. He slowly stood up, though he felt so weak. He latched onto the water in their bodies and slowly pushed them away when he saw them begin to move. The crowd was silent.

The two didn't attack, as expected. As Hinata released their bodies, they began to groan and moan and rub different parts of their bodies until they fully opened their eyes and set their sights on Hinata. Until Suga did, anyway.

He was satisfied that they were done. A knock out meant he had won the match, even if that knockout was brief. He turned around and walked to the edge of the plateau closest to him to find what he expected: Kageyama not too far away, rubbing his head and hip. Hinata turned to Oikawa in the stands. _Satisfied?_ he mouthed. Oikawa only appeared frozen in shock staring at Hinata. Hinata turned his gaze down and found the source of everyone's awe: the scars covering his tiny form.

There were marks from lashes and water whips and entire sections of flesh charred to the point of discoloration from some ruthless fire bender. There were dents in his ribs where there definitely shouldn’t have been along with bone-deep bruising. His stomach was not so much a stomach as it was a cut-up hollow where a stomach should have been. 

The entire group got the grotesque pleasure of seeing his back as well when he turned around to scramble for his shirt. That was where the worst damage was. It looked as if a child had haphazardly drawn on him with a marker, black dashes covering his back surrounding the crudely drawn characters for _friend._ Some monster had carved into his flesh and filled its carvings with ink, marking its victim for life. That monster had additionally burnt a deep, uneven ring around the symbols, just in case any persons that may have viewed it didn't notice. 

Hinata finally found his shirt and yanked it roughly over his head. He kept his back turned to the audience as he attempted to calm his breathing, but he couldn't escape the sounds of Yachi's muffled sobs and the retching of another member as they threw up their breakfast. He looked over to the side and saw Kageyama watching him not with horror or shock, but with sorrowful understanding. 

Hinata couldn't take it. He sprinted to the edge of the plateau and jumped off. He miscalculated the distance slightly, as he landed on his ankle and heard a sickening crack. He kept running despite the pain surging through his lower right leg. He sprinted to the tunnels and wasn't surprised to hear nobody following. When he reached the entrance, he took the turn towards the sleeping quarters and hobbled toward his room. Once he reached it, he kicked over the pot of water that someone must have put there since the morning and bent it into an ice wall covering the opening to the chamber. 

He collapsed onto his so-called bed, a rock table with a straw filled mattress on top, and cried. Hinata sniffled and bawled and screamed until his voice was gone and his eyes were red and puffy. He didn't care if these new people were supposed to be his family. Nobody was ever supposed to see him like that.

He knew that he'd only cause himself more suffering by leaving his ankle in its current state. He drew the sweat off of his skin and formed it into an ice cast around his badly broken foot. He went to sleep to the sound of his own ragged breathing and the grumbling of his empty cavern of a stomach. 

**_______________ **

 

 

Meanwhile, out in the crowd, Kiyoko was cradling a quietly crying Yachi while Oikawa closed his mouth and swallowed hard. _No wonder this kid was so hard to crack...Ushijima is ruthless._ He turned to Iwaizumi on his right to find him leaning over and holding his head in his hands. In the ring, Suga was examining Daichi for injuries while explaining to him why everyone went silent. Yamaguchi was wiping his mouth of any more vomit and Kenma had a hand on his back. 

Kageyama, who hadn't said more than two words to or about Hinata since his arrival, was the first to speak up. "We have to do something," he said while walking over from his landing spot on the ground. "If we're really a family like Oikawa-san says, it's our responsibility to protect all of its members." He jetted himself up onto the plateau using fire shooting from his hands.

Akaashi spoke up, "I agree with Kageyama-kun. Nobody who is capable of harming another like that should be allowed to live." He sounded completely cold. 

"Then we need to find his boss," Oikawa uttered quietly, contemplating all options. 

"And who would his boss be?" Tsukishima asked, somewhat annoyed.

"Ushijima Wakatoshi," Oikawa announced. Yamaguchi retched again and a collective shudder ran up everyone's spines. Iwaizumi just put his head in his hands, seemingly defeated already.

"Who else has a little monster at their disposal that has the capability to mutilate a child like that?!" Oikawa yelled at everybody and nobody. 

“Those bastards need to pay…” Asahi muttered darkly under his breath. 

"Are you all out for blood because Ushijima hurt a child or because he hurt Hinata? Or is it because he targeted Sugawara?” All eyes were on the source of the quiet, but rousing speech. Kenma spoke again. “I understand a few of you are into it because you've gotten to know an inkling of Hinata's obviously complex personality and happen to like it. But ask yourselves if you're doing it for a member of the family or so you can sleep better at night. Keep in mind, we've stooped to the level of Ushijima before and we aren't above killing others for power or money. Are we all willing to risk our lives for just another assassin who happened to have a bad ride but also happens to now be on our side?"

The tension in the cave rose. Every person took another look at their intentions as well as how low they were wiling to go for a person who was, for all intents and purposes, a total stranger. They also considered how low they were willing to go to get revenge on behalf of a family member. 

"I think they should pay, but we can't just rush into an enemy compound with no plan or knowledge of what assets they have working for them. All we know is that Ushijima is the boss and he has a little demon to do his bidding." Everyone turned toward the source of the speech: Kiyoko. She looked back at them all without an shred of fear or hesitation. "I don't like the way he was brought into our clan, but nevertheless Hinata is here. And he obviously needs us. But we need a plan." 

Iwaizumi finally spoke up, raising his head from his hands. "I say we send him back in. It's only been a few days since he disappeared, but any more time would cause more suspicion. If we put him back into their compound, we have a spy on the inside." 

"Y-you can't just p-p-put him back in there! H-He's so badly hurt alr-ready!" Yachi said, then broke off into another fit of hysterical crying, accompanied by gentle shushing on Kiyoko's part.

"I think we have to put him back in. He's got the freshest scar out of all of us. If any of us tries to get in there now, they'd see that our brands are long-healed and we'd probably be killed," Yahaba added. "He can pass it off as us kidnapping him, torturing him, then him escaping and making it back. We send him back onto the streets and they’ll find him.”

Oikawa remained silent and motionless while he listened to his family. Finally, he spoke up. "I agree. Kuroo can water whip him a few times, I'll add a couple light burns, Hajime pelts a few rocks into his ribs." He shuddered, disgusted by his own words. "We send him out looking like we tortured him for information and he reports back to them saying he didn't. On his next mission, we meet up and take him back with all the info. I'd love to just get the information now, but Ushijima changes hideouts like the wind changes directions. If we want to get him, we have to wait."

Nobody objected to his plan, but they were all disgusted by it. Some more than others. "Level the grounds," Oikawa muttered. Daichi and Iwaizumi nodded and bent the earth back into the ground, instead of its arena form. In the group's contemplation of what had to happen, they failed to notice Kageyama's absence. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! leave comments and kudos if you so choose. my tumblr is [right here](http://wolfenshire.tumblr.com) if you feel like yelling at me or discussing stuff!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hinata stared at the hole in his ice door where his guest had stood. He had an epiphany. If I'm gonna be weak, I'm gonna do it on my terms. He turned the ice to water and bent some it onto his melting ankle cast, the rest into the fallen pot. I'm taking control of my life. I have a group now and they'll protect me. I am safe with them. He smirked triumphantly to himself and hobbled out of his room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yoooo homies the bitch is back. like way too late. im so sorry. life happened and college is a bitch so i promise nothing but heres a little something!  
> warning: there is some more graphic stuff in this chapter. read at your discretion but it does come nearer to the end.

Kageyama walked through the tunnels he'd gotten lost in so many times before, but now knew every nook and cranny of. He made his way briskly to Hinata's quarters. He turned the corner and almost rammed face first into a two-meter tall block of solid ice. In putting a hand on it, he found it wasn't just cold, but was sub-zero. It was the kind of ice that was so freezing, it could burn a person.

He coated his hand in a protective layer of fire and cautiously reached forward. Kageyama touched his hand to the ice and gently pushed, increasing the size of the flames coating his hand. The ice wall wasn't particularly thick, maybe seven centimeters at best. He melted his way through it in little time.

When Kageyama had made a big enough hole to fit through, he silently stepped into Hinata's room. He didn't want him to have a startled awakening, though. He sat down on the floor and leaned back against the earth wall adjacent to the ruined ice block.

He didn't have to wait long for Hinata to wake up, though. As soon as his butt hit the floor with an almost inaudible thud, Hinata's eyes were open. They didn't fill with panic or fear, just recognition.

"Why are you here?" Hinata asked in a deep, scratchy voice. He was crying, Kageyama recognized. He didn't move from his near fetal position on his bed. Kageyama didn't move from his spot on the floor.

"I came to check in," he stated matter-of-factly. He saw Hinata's swollen eyes squint just the slightest bit in disbelief. "And I brought food." At that, he opened his eyes fully. Kageyama took a piece of bread from his pocket that he'd smuggled from lunch the day before. He tossed it to the bundle of limbs on the bed.

Hinata's arm shot out quickly to catch the yeasty projectile. He cradled the roll close to his chest as he slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position. Kageyama unconsciously sat up a little straighter with him. Hinata slowly ate the bread, but both boys knew he wanted so badly to gobble it all down in one bite.

After he finished chewing and swallowed the last bite, he just looked at the boy sitting across from him on the floor. Hinata studied his features: dark, glossy hair with stark blue eyes and pale skin, thin and calloused fingers typical of a firebender, lean body comprised of only muscle and bone. His dirt-encrusted shirt hung loose on his broad, firm shoulders over his torso. Two bare feet planted on the ground in front of him with arms draped over his knees.

Though Hinata didn't love having a ton of attention, he certainly handled it better than Kageyama. It figures an assassin wouldn't like having eyes on him. The firebender met Hinata's eyes once then glared down at the floor until he was certain he wasn't being observed anymore. It took longer than he would have liked.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, soaking up the rare moment of near-isolation from the loud group. Finally, Kageyama stood up. "Just so you know, they are plotting to overthrow Ushi- ....your old boss. But, they need you for it." He stood in silence for a little while longer, taking his time to look at the broken boy in front of him.

Kageyama swallowed thickly. He looked pained as he spoke his next words. "And you aren't alone." He pulled up the bottom of his loose shirt, showing off a deep reddish purple burn spanning the bottom of his ribs to beneath the waistline of his pants. He let Hinata soak in the sight, then dropped his shirt and stalked from the room.

Hinata stared at the hole in his ice door where his guest had stood. He had an epiphany. If I'm gonna be weak, I'm gonna do it on my terms. He turned the ice to water and bent some it onto his melting ankle cast, the rest into the fallen pot. I'm taking control of my life. I have a group now and they'll protect me. I am safe with them. He smirked triumphantly to himself and hobbled out of his room.

 

_______________________ 

 

When Hinata reached the training grounds (he was getting better at navigating the dimly lit tunnels) he didn't find the usual sight of a huge group training. Instead, he found a grim-looking Oikawa, Iwaizumi, Kuroo and Kenma sitting on the ground in a small circle, whispering amongst themselves. He figured they were a council of sorts, since they seemed to be the oldest members of the group, plus they each represented an element.

When they heard Hinata's ice cast clinking towards them, they all looked up and subsequently turned even grimmer. Iwaizumi was the one that rose from the group, though. "Hinata." He beckoned the waterbender over.

Hinata plopped down in between Kenma and Iwaizumi with only a slight inclination as to his purpose in the grand scheme.

"So, what's the plan?" Hinata asked brightly. Kenma internally flinched at his disproportionate joy. A thick blanket of silence coated the group as Hinata looked around at them all. "It really can't be that bad!" He almost laughed at how serious they all were.

Oikawa was the first to break the silence. "Actually, it is.” His eyes were fixed on Hinata’s ice cast. “We want to- have to send you back to Ushijima.” He didn't have to look at Hinata’s face to know a smile was no longer present. Oikawa swallowed. “We want to make it look like you were tortured for information and you escaped. You stay there, get sent out on another mission and relay information to us. We know Ushijima changes his headquarters often, so we need the most up to date material.”

Hinata looked at Oikawa with wide eyes, then at every other member of the council. None of them met his gaze. He finally looked down at his feet.

“Ok.” The group collectively looked up at Hinata with bewilderment. None of them were going to ask him if he was sure. They were too afraid to hear him say no.

 

_____________________

 

An excruciating hour later, Hinata was tied up to a chair with his hands bound behind his back getting rocks pelted at his ribs by Iwaizumi. What was painful wasn’t Hinata’s screams or grunts, it was lack of them. He barely showed any reaction to the torture. Kyoutani was waiting close by in case any of them hurt Hinata too badly. So far, it seemed impossible to hurt him at all.

“You know, you guys can hit me harder. I really can take it.” He almost smiled at the last bit. It only made hurting him even more painful for them. “Can one of you just get Daichi? I know he won’t hold back…” Hinata let his head slump back as he sighed. Iwaizumi was almost insulted by Hinata’s words, but put his clenched fists down and walked away to summon Daichi.

Meanwhile, Oikawa walked over to Hinata. “Can I take a look?” He gestured towards Hinata’s shirt. Hinata lifted his head back up and looked where his new leader was pointing. With slight hesitation, he nodded. Oikawa slowly reached down to the hem of his shirt and lifted up. He may have believed Hinata’s claim that they weren't really hurting him if he hadn't seen the dozens of little reddish purple welts all over his stomach and chest. Before he could drop Hinata’s shirt, he spoke up. “To really make it look like torture, you should burn my face and upper chest a little. Near the collar bones and cheek bones. They’re sensitive spots.” Hinata looked forward then closed his eyes.

Oikawa coated his fist in fire and swallowed. Hinata clenched his jaw and breathed out. Oikawa wound his fist back then quickly, but powerfully, punched Hinata in the face. He heard the dull thud of his flesh connecting with someone else’s. The recipient of the punch coughed and smiled slightly before wincing. “That’s how you do it.” Hinata could feel the skin around his cheek sizzling and burning.

He swallowed and bit back any pained noises. “Now my chest.” Oikawa lifted his shirt again and stared at the small space on Hinata’s torso that was devoid of any scars.

“I hate this,” he whispered. Hinata nodded.

“But you have to make it realistic. A few rocks on my ribs won’t convince anyone of anything. Hold a flame over someone’s heart long enough, they’ll break.” He looked right at Oikawa. “I won’t think of you any differently. You have t— aaaaAAAAGH!” Oikawa was holding his lit palm directly over Hinata’s heart. Hinata was squirming and shaking his head for about five seconds before he yelled out, “I tap!! Stop it!” Oikawa immediately removed his hand from Hinata’s chest and took a few steps back for good measure.

Hinata slumped his head forward and put his arms down by his sides. “Wha…how did you…” Oikawa stuttered weakly.

Kuroo cut in before Hinata could respond. “Sweat. Lots of physical pain means lots of sweat. Put sweat in the hands of a water bender and there goes any rope binding them.” He didn't look happy to be informing his leader of this.

Hinata lifted his head to look at Kenma. “Is there any way you can make a mark?” he asked quietly, slightly out of breath. Kenma gave a small nod. He walked up to Hinata and tentatively grabbed a handful of his hair, tilting his head back. He let out a small breath to gather himself. Suddenly, his grip on Hinata’s hair tightened and he punched Hinata square in the nose with a fist being blasted forward by air.

Kenma let go of his hair only to have it slump forward. Kuroo was about to check if he was unconscious when he saw Hinata’s back rising and falling rapidly. He was…laughing. “Damn, you're tougher than you look.” He tilted his head back up and looked at Kenma, who looked down and away, suddenly shy. There was a steady stream of blood running out of his now slightly crooked nose onto his shirt and dripping onto the seat of the chair.

He was about to say something else when a grimacing Iwaizumi led a stone-faced Daichi into the training grounds. “Hey Daichi!” Hinata yelled with a red smile.

Daichi didn't respond aside from whispering something to Iwaizumi that made him snort out a laugh. “Daichi I need you to do something. The last thing.” Daichi walked up to Hinata and just tilted his head to the side. Hinata slowly pushed himself out of the chair, taking a step to the side to catch himself.

“You’re swaying on your feet. Have you been drinking?” Daichi asked nonchalantly with a quirk of his eyebrow. Hinata laughed.

“No, but I have been hit a lot. I just need you to really do me in, ok?” Daichi only continued to look in his direction with a quirked eyebrow. “Break my wrist,” Hinata said with no hesitation. Daichi’s face turned back to its stoney default.

“Why?” Daichi asked in a voice slightly deeper than his usual.

Hinata seemed amused. “Because I know you won’t hold back and the best way to debilitate a water bender, especially a blood bender is to break their hand! I mean, or their wrist or arm or whatnot…Will you do it?” Hinata smiled.

Kuroo shook his head. “He definitely has brain damage..” Kenma nodded in assent.

Daichi didn't move for a minute in which Hinata attempted to stand without swaying. Finally, he reached out to Hinata with one hand. Hinata’s smile remained despite knowing exactly what was coming. He almost eagerly placed his hand in Daichi’s. The earth bender sighed and changed his grip on Hinata’s wrist. Swiftly, he brought his other hand up and pushed Hinata’s wrist back.

Hinata’s smile stayed in place, but his eyes gave him away. More unbidden tears were running down his face as he took his arm back from Daichi. “Thanks…” he muttered quietly. Daichi couldn't see the look of pain on Hinata’s face or the blood running down his chin, but he could feel the trembling present in Hinata’s tiny form. “Now, where’s the exit in this place?”

Hinata refused any healing besides cracking his wrist back into place and forming another homemade ice cast over it. The council along with Daichi accompanied Hinata through a secret passageway in a random section of wall in the tunnels. They walked (Hinata hobbled) for what felt like hours in near complete darkness only broken by a flame in Oikawa’s palm.

The end of the tunnel didn't fall in a sewer or back alley, as Hinata expected, but in the sparse woods outside the city. Oikawa and company bid Hinata farewell with simple words. “We’ll find you on your next mission.” Hinata took a large gulp of fresh air, but before he could turn to look back at them, the hole in the earth they’d come through was sealed. He was alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hell yea. stay tuned and all that shit. find me on [tumblr](http://wolfenshire.tumblr.com) and yea. lemme know what you did and didnt like!

**Author's Note:**

> let me know what you thought! comments and kudos are greatly appreciated! see you next chapter *finger guns*


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